"As long as I wasn't doing anything at night, I'd just sit by myself, and I would have a six-pack of Pabst," he said. "I don't know if I made it all the way through the six, but I'd just sit there and watch the show. And tape it."

After nailing his "SNL" audition at 24 ("He's one of two people I've ever seen who was completely ready to be on the show. Kristen Wiig is the other," former co-star Tina Fey told the magazine), Fallon developed a close relationship with show creator Lorne Michaels.

"Lorne helped me with everything -- with relationships, with me getting famous," Fallon said. "I was going through certain steps, and there were certain things I couldn't talk to my dad about, because he wouldn't know. Like, [I'd ask] 'I have money now. Do I still rent? Do I buy an apartment?' Or 'I'm in L.A. and I have to rent a car.' [He'd say,] 'You should get a Lexus, because you want to be quiet.' Or [I'd ask], 'Should I date this actress?' [And he'd say] 'You can date her, but you probably shouldn't marry her.' And he'd be totally right."

Then, it was Michaels who helped Fallon emerge from a dark period after he left "Saturday Night Live" in 2004. At that point, "I was probably drinking more than I should have," he said. Michaels offered him the opportunity to host "Late Night," and now, he's preparing to take over "The Tonight Show."

"I'm surrounded by good people. We have a baby now. We're in New York," he said. "Lorne is in the building. And I get to ride into the sunset with these people? This is it."